17 October 2015: The UN has marked the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, which was held under the theme ‘Building a sustainable future: Coming together to end poverty and discrimination.’ This year, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the theme highlighted the need for more attention with regard to the excluded and marginalized. Helen Clark, UN Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator, said the theme celebrated “the solidarity and the optimistic spirit” of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Ban explained that the 2030 Agenda represented a time-bound commitment of world leaders to ending poverty in all its forms, everywhere, which requires addressing discrimination in all its forms. He said “leaving no one behind” means: ending the discrimination and abuse targeted at the world’s women and girls; combating overt discrimination against minorities and migrants; ending the neglect of the disadvantaged, especially children; and ensuring access to the rule of law and protecting the human rights of all. The UN Secretary-General stressed that we can be the first generation to witness a world without extreme poverty, where all people, not only the powerful and the privileged, can participate and contribute equally.

Clark spoke about the challenges that the international community will need to address in order to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 1 on ending poverty in all its forms everywhere, including: global health threats; more frequent and intense natural disasters; volatile commodity markets; spiraling conflicts; and violent extremism, terrorism and related crises. She said eradicating poverty requires: inclusive and sustainable economic growth; well-designed social protection systems that enable people to sustain basic living standards even when shocks occur, help children stay in school, and enable families to get enough nutritious food; and stopping damage to vital ecosystems.

Irena Bokova, Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), noted that fighting poverty in a sustainable manner requires providing everyone with the means to be autonomous and assert themselves as active agents throughout their own lives. In order to eradicate poverty, she stressed the need for: quality education for all and the real possibility for everyone to participate in social transformations and cultural and scientific life – to create jobs and revenue-generating activities; sharing the benefits of scientific research – to improve crops and food security and ensure access to water as a global public good; and freedom of expression, public debate and information sharing – to enhance the social awareness and political commitment necessary to overcome this violence.

The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is celebrated annually on 17 October 2015. [UN Press Release] [UNDP Press Release] [UN Secretary-General Remarks] [UNDP Administrator Remarks] [UNESCO Director-General Remarks] [International Poverty Day Webpage]